African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

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ryan base
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Re: African RHD 1956 C resto

#31 Post by ryan base »

hi matt checking out your nice pics and admirering your nice cars but a little confused. i think what i am seeing are two cars, a 56, red, and a 65, white. but the thread title says 56c. well maybe, but seems like a typo. now if we can get past that little inconsistency and focus on the white car, the first difference to my 65c i noticed is the number plate next to the hood latch, which i haven't seen before. the next thing was the tank and then no rt side filler flap. maybe just the rhd requirerments. nevertheless, the green and fawnskin sound like a winning combination. good luck on your project thank you for sharing your progress

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Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#32 Post by Matt Kreeve »

Hi Ryan ... thanks for pointing that out - I must have typo'ed that when editing the first post which I did a couple times as things developed.
You are right - Red (orig silver/green) 56 A and Ivory (orig Irish G/fawn) 64 C - both RHD hence the differences you mentioned.

The A mounted on the rotisserie nearby with the C waiting patiently along with a preA cab that's on a jig.
The 993 & 997 cup cars being forced to wait their turn! ;)

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And the rest of the A being catalogued and refurbed while I wait for airfreight from California/Ohio/Toronto etc..
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I'll be getting both steering assemblies back this week, refurbed and etch primed and ready for paint.
And the A engine will go to the builder while I wait for the new synchros, loom, sheet metal and interior etc...
And the brakes will be reshod, new cylinders and built back up.
Lots of bolts being sent for dipping/plating as well as the electrics for checking - the wipers coming on well, now onto Genies etc..
Most of the work on the bodies still needs to be done but we won't cut until the new door skins, front & battery floors, jack points and longitudinals are actually here.

This is the second time I've been through everything and laid it out for review - starting to make more sense as I get further into the books.
Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

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Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#33 Post by Matt Kreeve »

busy week ... some progress on the parts that can be neatened & cleaned up and refurbed mechanically
- see if you can spot the problems

The steering boxes felt good 'in the barn' so it wasn't a big suprise that they tightened up and serviced well.
The drum are now on their way for some cleaning and a silver ceramic coat I think ... still reviewing options - don't want to impinge on the cooling and with the rims the drums are pretty much invisible anyway.

The hooters need to be coated but the rust cleaned up well and was only surface.

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Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

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Vic Skirmants
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#34 Post by Vic Skirmants »

Looks like the bottom trailing arms for your C have been replaced with earlier ones; different length bearing races. Long on the early, short on the C. Yes, I noticed the bent sway bar attaching arm.
DON'T ceramic coat the drums. That is an insulating material. The drums have to be capable of transferring heat to the atmosphere.

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Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#35 Post by Matt Kreeve »

thanks Vic - I found the right approach for those drums in the authenticity forum.

I take it once cleaned up there is no coating for the drums - road not race use - but I figured a coat of VHT (very hi temp) paint would help make cleaning them easier in future and be thin enough not to inhibit the cooling much?
Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

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Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#36 Post by Matt Kreeve »

Doing 2 restorations is more efficient than just one, however it still takes more time! Sure it's relatively less but absolutely more. (I say this to reinforce it to myself more than anything else.)

At least that's my excuse for being so quiet on the updates. Glad to say things are progressing well and here is where things stand for those not watching my #356registry tagged posts on the Instragram contraption (I'm NineXi_Cap on IG)

So without a laborious exploration of many things I didn't know/understand before I'd puzzled over them and worked them out to a large degree (I hope) .. and with much helpful input from many of you here - thanks again Mike(UK), John W, Jeff F, Ron LD, Jack S, Vic, James Mowry (Stoddards) and those classified sellers who have all delivered as promised - here is where we stand in a very abbreviated summary of the milestones of the team's last years work on the '56A (there are a dozen or so service providers .. I've done the mechanicals and all the co-ordination/ordering/spec'ing/deliveries)

ps - does one have to add on pic file at a time or is there a more efficient way? apologies - unsure why some of the pics are hsowing up differently from on google pics where I store them

My favorite pic - about 2 months ago after the glasurit (worth the expense in so many ways) went on (pre polish)
356A with rusted body cutouts.jpg
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Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

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Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#37 Post by Matt Kreeve »

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Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

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Doug McDonnell
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#38 Post by Doug McDonnell »

Oh Boy! Silver/green. One of my favorite combos. You have been a very busy man. Did a 356 delivered to Nairobi get the same unique overriders that South African 356A's got?
1965 356C 2000 BMW 740i Sport 1967 Honda CL77 There is never enough time to do it right, but always enough time to do it over.

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Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#39 Post by Matt Kreeve »

Yes busy! Didn't know the SA ones were unique Doug ... how so?

I bought new bumpers but my over-riders should be original .. will post pics soon of those so you can see ... funny thing is that today's price for over-riders is what the car cost new here in '56!

Double Green over Silver was as COA .. very very very happy I reverted to it! Seems quite a rare combo by Goog image search at least.
Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

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Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#40 Post by Matt Kreeve »

cont/


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all the lead removed
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Attachments
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Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

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Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#41 Post by Matt Kreeve »

all comments and criticism welcome!
Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

David Pateman
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#42 Post by David Pateman »

Rather stunning I think!
Contact for Kardex

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Doug McDonnell
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#43 Post by Doug McDonnell »

1965 356C 2000 BMW 740i Sport 1967 Honda CL77 There is never enough time to do it right, but always enough time to do it over.

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Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#44 Post by Matt Kreeve »

Yes thanks Doug! That's a great article by one of the oldest 356 nuts around these parts (he lives near Peter Dorfer of Carrera Motors) - amazing to think of those 'knock-down' (partially assembled and unsprayed cars - imported as such for assembly here to get around import duties etc..) cars sitting on the bottom of the suez canal! Those cars were all B's.
Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

User avatar
Matt Kreeve
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Re: African RHD 1956A & 64C resto

#45 Post by Matt Kreeve »

speaking of Articles I meant to post this earlier relating to the Barn find behind the cars - the stories from various people related to the seller are interesting but essentially the owner rented out the farm where the cars were kept and the long term tenants, after a few year decided they needed the garage space and pushed the car into a stand of trees and very kindly covered them with tarps - he never realised that until many years later.
356 Barn Article copy.JPG.jpg
Either way this lore is now somewhat less relevant as I'm glad to say we finished the lesser job of welding up the C and it is now in dummy coat waiting for it's new YNZ loom and Austrian Red Leather interior. Funny too to read the article after tracking down one of the prior owners, their mechanic and the car's service records and entry in the African 356 registry.
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I took all the advice kindly given to me - easier when you're doing 2 cars I guess - and so I have gone stock with the A and "my pick" with the C (as the engine wasn't exactly matching (though service records show a rebuild in mid 70s) and needed parts replaced - it'll be a 2.1L now). The A went straight back to stock as per my recent post ... while with the 64C I decided on the colour I would have chosen were I one of the lucky Paint to Sample crew lining up to buy the 911R's or RS of today ... Stone Grey over Red (an interior colour I've also always loved)

after initial strip
356C bead blast 2018-05-02 01-24-02.jpg
356C bead blast 2018-05-02 01-24-02.jpg (233.3 KiB) Viewed 2210 times
after first coat of Glasurit
stone grey glasurit paint on 356c.jpg
Currently working on two nut+bolt resto's in Cape Town
'56 A RHD 5606 Silver Met) over Green - delivered Nairobi (Cooper Motor Corp)
'64 C RHD 6406 (Irisgrun) w Fawn (rehbraun) - delivered Johannesburg (Lindsay Saker)

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